Find out how popular the last name Racine is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Racine.

Racine, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Racine surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Racine in America

Racine is the 6933rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Racine surname appeared 4,836 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Racine.

We can also compare 2010 data for Racine to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Racine

The surname Racine has its origin in France, with the earliest records dating back to the 12th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old French word "racine," meaning "root," which was likely given as a descriptive nickname to someone who lived near the roots of a tree or near the base of a hill or mountain.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Racine can be found in the Cartulaire de l'abbaye de Saint-Père de Chartres, a medieval cartulary from the Abbey of Saint-Père in Chartres, France, dating back to the late 12th century. This document mentions a certain "Robertus de Racine" in the year 1189.

During the Middle Ages, the name Racine was predominantly concentrated in the regions of Île-de-France and Normandy, particularly in the areas around Paris and Rouen. The variant spellings "Racyne" and "Racynne" were also commonly used during this period.

In the 16th century, the surname Racine gained prominence with the birth of the renowned French dramatist and poet, Jean Racine (1639-1699), who is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in French literature. His tragic plays, such as "Phèdre" and "Andromaque," have left an indelible mark on the literary landscape.

Another notable figure bearing the surname Racine was Louis Racine (1692-1763), a French botanist and naturalist who made significant contributions to the study of plants and their classification. He was a member of the Royal Academy of Sciences in Paris.

In the 19th century, the Racine family played a prominent role in the development of the city of Racine, Wisconsin, in the United States. The city was named after the French explorer and fur trader, Jacques Racine, who was believed to have established a trading post in the area in the late 17th century.

Among other notable individuals with the surname Racine are the French philosopher and theologian, Joseph Racine (1588-1639), and the Canadian politician and lawyer, Marcel Racine (1901-1973), who served as a member of the Senate of Canada.

While the surname Racine has its roots in France, it has since spread to various parts of the world, including Canada, the United States, and other countries with significant French influence or immigration.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Racine

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Racine.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Racine was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Racine has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Racine was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Racine, please contact us.

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!